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Xun posted:Idk, maybe my prof was scaring us but he told us that if you have a facet parallel to the cleavage plane the gem might CLEAVE IN TWAIN!!! A lot of new and well-regarded polishing laps (and lapidary supplies in general) have been coming out of a company called Gearloose. The disposable mylar oxide toppers are relatively easy to use but can round facet edges and don't last terribly long--his products for polishing are mostly chargeable laps to which you can apply oxides or diamond grit, which he also offers in easy-to-smear lipstick-like formulations. I don't facet so my experience with his laps is somewhat limited, but I really like his oxide and diamond sticks for prepolishing and polishing. Diamond polishing is good for almost any stone, but targeted oxides (eg, Ce or Zr oxides for quartz) can yield better results for particular stones.
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Apr 29, 2016 17:07
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I apologize if this has come up yet. I'd like to explore HPHT and CVD diamonds. I can't tell what stores are selling real actual HPHT/CVD stones and which are selling any one of a million terrible variants though. Are there any recommendations for reputable synthetic diamond vendors?
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Apr 30, 2016 17:07
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I live in Indianapolis and I was looking into buying an engagement ring, however, I can't seem to find any stores that aren't like Zales, Reis Nichol, etc, which seems like they would make up there products by a lot. The local stores seem to be very small, which makes me nervous due to lack of selection and reputation and I would prefer not to do it online. Any recommendations on what to do or am I over thinking this?
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Apr 30, 2016 21:22
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so you want a big brand name everyone knows about but you don't want to pay the markup for a big brand name everyone knows about?
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Apr 30, 2016 21:41
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The Sock posted:I live in Indianapolis and I was looking into buying an engagement ring, however, I can't seem to find any stores that aren't like Zales, Reis Nichol, etc, which seems like they would make up there products by a lot. The local stores seem to be very small, which makes me nervous due to lack of selection and reputation and I would prefer not to do it online. Any recommendations on what to do or am I over thinking this? Doesn't a local newspaper/radio station/whatever media outlet do a "Best of" annual issue? Or ask a co-worker who wears nice jewelry what place they recommend.
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May 1, 2016 04:47
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Claes Oldenburger posted:I recently designed and cast this ring for a client of ours (she didn't like it, what a butt) so we ended up making her something else but the colour of Paraiba Tourmalines is just so nuts. I thought that ring was excellent work. I can't believe the customer returned it!
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May 1, 2016 05:35
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I can't afford it, but would you PM me a price anyway just so I can assign a number to that feeling?
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May 1, 2016 07:44
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Tunicate posted:I can't afford it, but would you PM me a price anyway just so I can assign a number to that feeling? Or just post the price here? Just so all of us who are lusting after it know how many pennies we need to save!!
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May 2, 2016 03:14
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Roxy Rouge posted:Or just post the price here? Just so all of us who are lusting after it know how many pennies we need to save!! I was wondering about this as well. A ballpark would be cool too. The ring looks stunning! Thanks to all the jewelers posting btw, very informative thread
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May 2, 2016 10:54
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JohnnyRnR posted:I thought that ring was excellent work. I can't believe the customer returned it! Thanks! Tunicate posted:I can't afford it, but would you PM me a price anyway just so I can assign a number to that feeling? Yeah no worries, no harm in giving the people what they want! Paraibas are an extremely rare type of tourmaline and with that comes the price, it's pretty standard for them to be around $10,000/ct+ which brings that stone alone to somewhere around $24,000CAD and the ring being around $26,500CAD. It's the second priciest stone I've ever worked with, second only to a 5.02ct diamond that came across my bench a few weeks ago. It's a solitaire and hilariously large, when I can post pictures I will!
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May 3, 2016 02:11
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I've been posting some fancier & more unique pieces to Instagram lately. (LINK) I'm on vacation now but will resume posting in the next week or so.
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May 3, 2016 06:36
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JohnnyRnR posted:I've been posting some fancier & more unique pieces to Instagram lately. (LINK) That tiara is awesome! I really love how you matched the colors
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May 3, 2016 13:12
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Does anyone have any experience with pre-owned rings? We're looking for a basic solitaire, so I'd expect it not to be hard to find something we like, and the opportunity to knock a chunk off the price is appealing. I'm mostly worried about authenticity. I'm not looking for a $2,000 piece of glass.
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May 3, 2016 14:32
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Claes Oldenburger posted:Thanks! It's things like this and Johnny's custom work that make me so sad that not only can I not currently afford the ring, but under no circumstances will I ever be. It's hard having champagne tastes on a water budget.
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May 3, 2016 15:49
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JohnnyRnR posted:I've been posting some fancier & more unique pieces to Instagram lately. (LINK) Really amazing stuff, and seconding the tiara comment. Tiaras are #1 on my list of things to make for someone that I have not yet, so it's good to see they're still around haha. Brennanite posted:It's things like this and Johnny's custom work that make me so sad that not only can I not currently afford the ring, but under no circumstances will I ever be. It's hard having champagne tastes on a water budget. If it helps, I also will most likely never be able to drop a stress free 25k on a ring like this haha. I can make em' but I sure can't buy em'! Keep in mind these are the prices set by the shop I work for, not my own. In this case it wouldn't change a huge amount, but one of the reasons I'm getting into gem cutting is so I can create pieces at better price points by eliminating (almost) all the middlemen. Ultimately I want to be able to make pieces for people who will appreciate them. It's about getting them to the people maaaaan. That includes making nice stuff with less rare stones so everyone can have that feeling!
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May 3, 2016 17:20
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Claes Oldenburger posted:Really amazing stuff, and seconding the tiara comment. Tiaras are #1 on my list of things to make for someone that I have not yet, so it's good to see they're still around haha. Ahhhh, that ring is (more than) a bit out of my price range, but just gorgeous! Love seeing your work.
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May 4, 2016 03:17
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JohnnyRnR posted:I've been posting some fancier & more unique pieces to Instagram lately. (LINK) Any chance when that you get back you could post a video of that quartz with the liquid petroleum in it? I didn't know you could get liquid deposits sealed in like that, that's so cool.
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May 4, 2016 20:22
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How good are you folks here on reading gold hallmarks? I took my ring to a person in Kansas who was very renowned for reading hallmarks and appraising jewelry and he returned my appraising fee after a few months of being unable to come to a conclusion on my simple gold pinky ring that was my great grandfather's. I know it's nine karats, I believe the manufacturer is a marking of WWL with perhaps a small letter in the space of the L and a lowercase cursive B. I'd really love to know the year it was made because we believe the ring was given to my grandfather by a warden of Windsor castle that was sort of a godfather to him and that would help us figure it out.
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May 6, 2016 04:24
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Google tells me it's William Wilkinson Limited. Opened in 1860 and apparently still in business. http://925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2204 http://www.925-1000.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26608 The letter you see is a date code showing when the ring was made. Which one does it look like? 
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May 6, 2016 06:46
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JohnnyRnR posted:Google tells me it's William Wilkinson Limited. Opened in 1860 and apparently still in business. Thanks for looking. I really can't nail it between the second and sixth. Here is a flash heavy picture that might give you a look.  Any info about this ring would be VERY appreciated. Stuff about my great grandfather is very cool and someday I'm going to do a "TELL ME ABOUT" him thread because I have tons of cool military photos and things that people could certainly help me with. Everyone in the family who knew about his specifics is dead unfortunately.
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May 7, 2016 04:47
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I'm in the middle of an Etsy dispute about a ring size. In case you care about the background story, the wrong size came, I got it measured by a jeweler, but seller still claimed it was the right size. I have photo of the ring getting measured, he has video of him measuring the ring, and they're clearly reading as different sizes. I only sent the ring back to the seller once Etsy had ruled in my favour and now that I no longer have the ring I can't provide any more evidence. Now the seller's video might make them reverse their "ruling". My jewelry question is, how much discrepancy is there between ring mandrels? Is it possible that one mandrel can show one size and another shows another? Are any more legitimately standardized than others? When I took it to a jeweler, she said that there is some discrepancy between mandrels but that the difference measured (a bit more than .25) was too much for it to be error. Also, thanks to all the jewelry enthusiasts/jewelers who keep this thread alive-- I've lurked in it since the early days.
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May 10, 2016 20:52
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That dude's a dick, but if the return's been processed and he has the ring back and you have the cash back any attempt at forcibly un-returning the item is pretty drat unlikely.
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May 10, 2016 22:21
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There is a lot of variance between ring & bracelet mandrels. The sizes aren't really standardized. More of a "pretty close" type situation.
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May 11, 2016 16:35
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Are any of the online jewelry stores going to reliably have pictures of the diamonds being sold? I've been told that Blue Nile does, but I only ever see sample images.
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May 12, 2016 07:23
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Baronash posted:Are any of the online jewelry stores going to reliably have pictures of the diamonds being sold? I've been told that Blue Nile does, but I only ever see sample images.
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May 12, 2016 15:26
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I'm in the process of looking for a ring for my girlfriend, and believe I've hit the "sweet spot" of pricing. I'm looking at spending about $5000 (hoping to spend less) on a round cut, ~ 1ct, I+ SI1+ Ideal cut diamond on a twist shank with melee down the sides. Something like this:  I've been searching around and talking to some online brokers to source something like this, but wasn't sure if I was aiming too low with my budget or if I'm aiming too high. It seems like there's a couple guys in here that know way more about this than I could ever learn, and was hoping for an opinion.
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May 12, 2016 16:20
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Claes is awesome! My ring holder necklace that he made just arrived and it's perfect! I can put any of my rings on it without even having to take off the necklace which is a big plus. I highly recommend people getting custom pieces made by him. http://i.imgur.com/nKs2HLJ.jpg http://i.imgur.com/L9KbOcT.jpg
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May 13, 2016 22:21
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Uhhh I want that. edit Claes, I haven't forgotten about you for my custom sculptural piece. The center stone's just been delayed by... a lot.
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May 13, 2016 22:36
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megathrust posted:Claes is awesome! My ring holder necklace that he made just arrived and it's perfect! I can put any of my rings on it without even having to take off the necklace which is a big plus. I highly recommend people getting custom pieces made by him. First, your ring is really, really pretty. Second, how does the necklace work? I'm curious how the ring goes on and off without the necklace doing the same.
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May 13, 2016 22:45
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Brennanite posted:First, your ring is really, really pretty. Second, how does the necklace work? I'm curious how the ring goes on and off without the necklace doing the same. I imagine you thread the chain through the ring?
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May 13, 2016 22:46
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Brennanite posted:First, your ring is really, really pretty. Second, how does the necklace work? I'm curious how the ring goes on and off without the necklace doing the same. Thanks! It's a bit tough to explain but I pull the chain a little bit so I can thread the ring over one of the pendant's prongs, over the center and past the second prong- essentially passing the whole pendant through the ring - then the ring is held in the necklace and can just rest on top of the pendant.
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May 13, 2016 22:58
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Captain Log posted:Thanks for looking. I really can't nail it between the second and sixth. Here is a flash heavy picture that might give you a look. Vintage jewellery is something I actually know a bit about, unlike lapidary work which I have been reading about with interest, but without having anything to contribute. It's weird that your expert was flummoxed by this, because it's a very common type of English gold signet ring, they're worth around $100 to $200 depending on the weight. Do you ever wear it yourself? To my eye, the hallmark reads: [?.W Ld] [Prefix] [375] [Date Letter] [Leopard's Head] The leopard's head assay stamp is only used by London's assay office and is one of the oldest such stamps in continuous use anywhere. It was introduced in 1300 and the design has changed over the years - sometimes the leopard wears a crown, sometimes not - but it's always a leopard's head. The maker's mark [?.W. Ld] is frankly unlikely to be anyone very famous. 'Ld' is often used instead of 'Ltd' on such marks. I'm not quite convinced that both initials are W. The thing I called 'Prefix' will either be a symbol, or the digit '9'. I can't see it clearly as the curve of the shank hides it. 9ct gold jewellery made after about 1930 often has both '9'/'9ct' and '375' (the actual gold percentage) stamped on it. The date letter would be easier to make out on a macro shot, but the lozenge around it looks like an elongated octagon, which indicates a date of manufacture between 1936 and 1955. I couldn't read the letter even after sharpening the image, but it looks uppercase to me. But you can do this yourself. Get a magnifying glass, use the flowchart dating system here, and you'll know the exact year and can bluff your way in dating English gold in future: http://www.gold-traders.co.uk/hallmarks/
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May 14, 2016 12:01
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To Vex a Stranger posted:I'm in the process of looking for a ring for my girlfriend, and believe I've hit the "sweet spot" of pricing. I'm looking at spending about $5000 (hoping to spend less) on a round cut, ~ 1ct, I+ SI1+ Ideal cut diamond on a twist shank with melee down the sides. I would think that budget would be on the low side for that sort of ring. megathrust posted:Claes is awesome! My ring holder necklace that he made just arrived and it's perfect! I can put any of my rings on it without even having to take off the necklace which is a big plus. I highly recommend people getting custom pieces made by him. I'm glad you like it! It also looks amazing with your ring on it. Fits perfectly  Rurutia posted:Uhhh I want that. No worries! Carnival of Shrews posted:Vintage jewellery is something I actually know a bit about, unlike lapidary work which I have been reading about with interest, but without having anything to contribute. This is all super helpful/interesting info. Thanks!
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May 14, 2016 23:43
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That is bad rear end. A great solution to a common problem.
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May 15, 2016 02:35
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JohnnyRnR posted:That is bad rear end. A great solution to a common problem. That's such a neat idea. Can I add a plea to always match the gold percentage of any carrier or chain to that of the original piece? This wishbone carrier is one of the best solutions I've seen; but I'm going to show one of the worst, and I thought I might ask for a bit of advice on it too. I buy and sell old jewellery in a small way, and I've seen quite a few 18ct rings that have been regularly worn on 9ct chains and suffered for it, because of the difference in hardness. But the most dramatic damage I've found is on this 18ct gold, enamel and agate Victorian pendant I bought in a lot:  Lovely restrained work. OK, someone has buggered about with it a little (someone who had the skill to remove the ring that connects the body to the bail, probably because it wore thin...and chose to replace it with a nasty brass eyelet). But I've seen worse, and at least they didn't solder it on with lead. I don't have the skill to tackle this issue, but if I go to Birmingham here in the UK, I can find someone who does. Sensitive artists should brace themselves now:  When I bought this piece, which like a lot of Victorian pendants was always meant to be worn on a ribbon, it was instead on a gold-plated costume chain, and had clearly been worn like that for years. The actual chain was steel, and it worked away at that 18ct gold like a 2mm chainsaw. This is an extreme case, but it can happen to any piece that's rubbing against something made from a harder metal. I'm not sure how this can best be fixed. The combination of enamel and the decorative wirework means it can't be conventionally soldered ever again; laser welding is the only course. Probably the easiest and least noticeable mend would be to cut out the small remaining bridge, even up the edges, pinch the bail so they meet, and rejoin them (this would probably lose the decorative ball). It really is a shame, and will reduce the value of the piece considerably even after a good restoration outcome. Would welcome anyone's expertise on this, especially on laser welding. Carnival of Shrews fucked around with this message at 11:16 on May 15, 2016 |
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May 15, 2016 11:12
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Your fix is simple and would preserve the structure and style of the piece. We would all like to perform full restorations on every piece, but the costs can climb quickly. Laser welding is the right choice. And that is a lovely pendant. Do you keep your inventory online so we can see it?
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May 17, 2016 06:41
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Cool thread! I have been working on getting into gemstone collecting. Really love anything tourmaline; tanzanite and fluorite are close runner ups. Check this out this pendant I got from a buddy who is a wire wrapper  14k gold with silver accents Cruzeiro Mine tourmaline 3x Neon blue apatites 7x amethyst And here is a laser cut Ametrine from an artist (Dalan Hargrave) I can only dream of owning a piece from. 
goodness fucked around with this message at 08:16 on May 17, 2016 |
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May 17, 2016 08:02
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Claes Oldenburger posted:Last one has a small inclusion on the table, first one might be a bit deep, but first two seem fine. They offer free shipping right? I suppose you could always get a few to see in person and send the ones you don't like back? I think it's important to see how they look in person before making a final decision. So I ended up getting a diamond and band from James Allen, and I guess it looks ok? It seems to sparkle and the only inclusion appears like it got hidden by a prong, but to my naked eye that's a guess more than anything. It's a 1.02 ct, G-VS2, ideal princess cut, with a flat platinum band in solitaire setting and I paid $5400 total. I dunno- jewelry never really "wows" me, but I was in between this and a 2.2mm pave setting that cost $1000 more. I decided on the solitaire because it's more traditional and I think easier to add onto with a nice wedding band, but I was worried with the pave and the stones falling out, or being hard to clean. My girlfriend likes to work out but takes her jewelry off for that-she also works as an admin so nothing too rough I wouldn't imagine. The solitaire just looks so standard though, however she does like traditional stuff and nothing too flashy. Do you think the pave would be a better go? Maybe something more eye popping than a solitaire or am I just overthinking it? Are my concerns about the pave not warranted? Also wondering if I should just return it and try my luck at a local jeweler, but I'm not sure how much of a markup it would be compared to the deal I got online.
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May 17, 2016 12:24
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SMDFTB posted:So I ended up getting a diamond and band from James Allen, and I guess it looks ok? It seems to sparkle and the only inclusion appears like it got hidden by a prong, but to my naked eye that's a guess more than anything. Jewelry didn't wow me until I started expanding what I was looking at. Diamonds and gold bands are boring and the least prettiest stone in my opinion. I'll post some pictures when I get on a computer of some cool stuff.
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May 17, 2016 17:33
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goodness posted:Cool thread! I have been working on getting into gemstone collecting. Really love anything tourmaline; tanzanite and fluorite are close runner ups. I'm not usually into wire wrapped stuff but that is very well done. Cool! Dalan Hargrave does things that I classify as straight wizardry. There's a few extremely talented young engravers/gem carvers he's teaching that I follow on instagram who I very much look up to. They have been pretty instrumental in me just biting the bullet and finally getting the equipment to engrave and cut gemstones. Their styles may not always be what I like, but their craftsmanship and attention to detail is amazing. Not only on the top down but all sides of their pieces. SMDFTB posted:So I ended up getting a diamond and band from James Allen, and I guess it looks ok? It seems to sparkle and the only inclusion appears like it got hidden by a prong, but to my naked eye that's a guess more than anything. In terms of straight price you're probably not going to get a better deal at any local jeweller. Local stores are going to have markup relative to their business costs that cannot be split between thousands of rings. I think the eye popping-ness you're trying to find is going to (most likely) take the ring into a non traditional or flashy place. If she likes traditional and non-flashy, that's what she likes! As long as the ring isn't built wrong, a solitaire one carat princess ring is going to look pretty much the same from anywhere. That being said if she does want a pave band it's something that can be done into the ring after the fact. Any local custom jeweller should be able to pave set the band for you.
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May 17, 2016 18:48
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